2000
#38,771
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 536
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.20
Very Rare Last name
Hally
A locational surname referring to someone from Halle, Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 611 Americans carry the last name Hally. That puts it at #43,628 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 560,973 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hally surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Hally with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
611
1 in 560,973
Census rank
#43,628
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
533
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 533 bearers of the surname Hally in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 43628th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hally, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Hispanic (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hally
The surname Hally is believed to have originated in Scotland. It is likely derived from the Old Norse word "hali," which means "tail" or "ridge." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a ridge or tailed hill.
The earliest known record of the name Hally dates back to the 13th century in the county of Ayrshire, Scotland. The Hally family was prominent in the parish of Galston during this time period, with several members holding positions of influence in the local community.
In the 16th century, a notable member of the Hally family was John Hally, who served as the Provost of Ayr from 1563 to 1565. He played a significant role in the town's governance during the tumultuous years of the Scottish Reformation.
Another notable figure was Sir Robert Hally, born in 1625 in Kilmarnock, Scotland. He was a successful merchant and landowner, and his estate, Hally Castle, still stands today as a landmark in the region.
In the 18th century, the Hally surname began to spread beyond Scotland as members of the family migrated to other parts of the British Isles and, eventually, to the American colonies. One notable figure from this period was William Hally, born in 1742 in Edinburgh, who served as a captain in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
The name Hally has also been found in various place names throughout Scotland, such as Hally Hill in Ayrshire and Hally Burn, a stream in Dumfriesshire. These place names likely derived from the surname itself, reflecting the influence and presence of the Hally family in these areas.
Over the centuries, the Hally surname has undergone several variations in spelling, including Hallie, Halley, and Halyie. However, the core pronunciation and meaning have remained largely consistent, reflecting the name's Scottish heritage and origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hally
Among Census respondents with the surname Hally, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Hispanic (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hally bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Hally surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.9% · 447
- Black or African American5.4% · 29
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 28
- Two or more races3.4% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hally
Hally appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#42,030
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 517
-19 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Down 3,259 places
2020
#43,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 533
+16 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Down 1,598 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #38,771 | 536 | 0.20 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #42,030 | 517 | 0.18 | -19 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 3,259 places |
| 2020 | #43,628 | 533 | 0.18 | +16 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 1,598 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Hally surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #42,030 | #43,628 | -3.8% |
| Count | 517 | 533 | 3.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.18 | 0.18 | -0.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hally bearers went from 517 to 533 (+3.1% change). The surname moved down 1,598 positions in the national ranking, going from #42,030 to #43,628.
FAQ
Hally surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hally?
Name Census estimates that about 611 living Americans carry the surname Hally. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 560,973 residents.
How common is Hally?
Hally ranks #43,628 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 533 people with the surname Hally. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (611), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Hally.
Has Hally become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hally went from 517 recorded bearers to 533. That is an increase of 16 (+3.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #42,030 to #43,628.
What does the Census say about the background of Hally?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hally, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Hispanic (5.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Hally in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.9% (447 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hally appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.9%), Black (5.4%), Hispanic (5.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Hally (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Hally mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from Halle, Germany. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Hally (0.18 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Hally?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.